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Monday, February 10, 2014

Magenta Harvest Interview

1.Can you give us an update on what has been going on with the band since the recording of the new album?

To be honest the most of the time we have just been waiting for this album to be released... We haven't had any possibilities to play live since Mathias has been super busy with Finntroll and that's still the case. We just wait that we'll manage to play live when he has some time off of Finntroll. Of course now we are also making new stuff while waiting for to play live.

2.You recently put out a new album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical direction it has taken and also how does it differ from your past recordings?

This is the debut album for us and there actually are four songs from our two old demos, so we can't really speak about differencies from previous releases. Well, musical direction is and will be death metal, but like already with this record we have influences of black metal also and other music styles too. We are not afraid of to experiment with different styles. That is not the sole intention though. We'll do the stuff that sounds good to our ears. We'll see what kind of mix we bring with the next album.

3.I have read that the band started out as a duo, what was the decision behind hiring a full line up?

Yes, we were a duo, but just because we didn't have other members yet. It wasn't like we wanted to be a duo... We just wanted to do some songs ready and then hire more guys. It was quite natural to start as a duo because still today we two are the ones who make the most of the music and arrangements.

4.Can you tell us a little bit more about the lyrical topics and subjects the new release explores?

The themes are quite varied and range from classical death metal lyrics dealing with murder and death to stories about end times and apocalypse. Some of the songs are based upon 5000 years old Babylonian and Sumerian flood myths which bares great resemblance to the story of Noah and the Great Flood in the Bible, total destruction and re-creation. These stories are what the title "Volatile Waters" refer to."

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Magenta harvest'?

That's a difficult one. We didn't want to have a typical death metal band name. It was a difficult job the find any good name. Some people may argue that we still haven't found it, haha. I went through my old band's ...and Oceans lyrics where I found this Magenta Harvest. I honestly don't know what is the meaning of it... I haven't read those lyrics in a while. Maybe there could be some explanation for it...

6.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

Well, with this band we have only played two shows. Second was far better than the first, haha. The idea was that when the album is out, we start to do more shows. Situation is challenging though since Mathias is so busy with Finntroll and Janne has shows with Mygrain also. We don't have any gig booking agency yet, so that won't make this easier either. We are determined though that we'll get them more than enough any time soon... So we really can't tell anything about the stage performance yet... we are still evolving...

7.Do you have any touring plans for the new album?

I could say see the previous answer, but.... Of course we'd like to tour, but we don't have any booking agency and what's even more affecting, we have such a deal that we really can't get any support from our label either. Too bad. Nowadays if you are going to tour and you are not the headliner you end up being one of those buy-ons. Money talks. We hope that when we have the chance to have shows here in Finland, eventually we are able to tour abroad as well. We can't really help the situation. We surely appreciate all the support from the fans who make requests to different festivals and gig organizers etc.

8.The new album came out on Inverse Records, can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

Well, it's not one of those traditional labels. They are more like publishing and promoting company. Meaning that we have handled all the studio and album expenses and they handle pressing, promoting, advertising etc.

So again money talks... Seriously, so far everything has worked as planned and we have a good relationship with the label and with our contact there.

To be honest, some day it wouldn't be bad at all to get a deal with bigger label so we could get the support we need for touring etc.

9.On a worldwide level how has the feedback been to the new album by fans of death metal?

It has been really good. Most of the critics have understood what we are doing here. Critics are always 'only' critics, but of course it's nice to read good reviews than the bad ones.

From other people than critics the feedback has been also great! Of course we are also very confident about this album. We just need it to be heard... One solution would be having those shows. Of course nowadays albums can be found all over the net. Torrents, digital downloads, spotify etc.

10.What is going on with the other musical projects these days that the band members are involved with?

Of course Finntroll is going strong. They just released new album last year and still touring on that. Mygrain also released a new album last year so they are busy as well. I am also getting busy with my other band Festerday which was my first band since '89. It has been put together again... We are about to sign a deal for releasing our old demos etc. After that new material will be made. So every one is more or less busy with other things beside Magenta Harvest as well.

11.What direction do you see your music heading into on future releases?

Like mentioned before the base sound will be death metal. We'll just have to see how colouring it. Of course you always have to do better with the next album. That's the thing with us too.

12.What are some bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your newer music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Well, I can speak only for myself, but I mostly listen to black and death metal. I have had my periods of heavy, thrash, speed and whatever metal, but the main thing is death and black.

Bands I like to listen nowadays are olden goldies like Dissection, Bathory, Bolt Thrower, Carcass, Hypocrisy, Gehenna, Dismember and tons of others. I rarely pick any new band since I'm satisfied with all the classic death and black metal releases. Still every now and then it's nice to discover some new up and coming bands...

13.Do you have any non musical interests?

Well I have family and kids so that's a big interest there.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

Thanks for this interview and to people who read this, support good music!!